Reacting to Dems’ tax package, Connecticut businesses suggest they already have one foot out the door

By Christine Stuart ctnewsjunkie.com

Published
2:21 pm EDT, Monday, June 1, 2015

Rep. John Frey reads a statement from GE to the Finance Committee.

Rep. John Frey reads a statement from GE to the Finance Committee.

Photo: Christine Stuart — CTNewsJunkie

Photo: Christine Stuart — CTNewsJunkie

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Rep. John Frey reads a statement from GE to the Finance Committee.

Rep. John Frey reads a statement from GE to the Finance Committee.

Photo: Christine Stuart — CTNewsJunkie

Reacting to Dems’ tax package, Connecticut businesses suggest they already have one foot out the door

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Connecticut’s business community made a last-ditch effort Monday to stop what they believe will be devastating tax increases with dire consequences.

GE, which is headquartered in Connecticut, didn’t mince words when it said the tax hikes that are part of the budget deal between Democratic leadership and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will make businesses “seriously consider whether it makes any sense to continue to be located in this state.”

Rep. John Frey, R-Ridgefield, said he received a phone call Sunday afternoon from Jeff Bornstein, GE’s Chief Financial Officer, who told him the company was considering whether to move its corporate headquarters based on the information it was reading about the proposed tax package.

According to a spokesman for GE, they have 5,700 employees, but Frey suggested there’s a bigger, ancillary impact with respect to GE’s relationships with suppliers and vendors in Connecticut.

“We’re talking 50,000 employees that are either directly or indirectly related to GE,” Frey told the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee on Monday. “That’s terrifying.”